Technical Field
The present disclosure is directed to a microfluidic delivery system including a rigid substrate that supports a die and is configured to provide a fluid path to the die.
Description of the Related Art
Thermal inkjet technology is typically utilized in printers for ejection of drops of ink onto paper. The inkjet technology includes replaceable inkjet cartridges that include an ink reservoir that provides the ink to a MEMS die or print head that is spaced from the reservoir. The print head is positioned on an extended end of the cartridge that is separated from a main body that holds the reservoir. When installed in the printer, the printed head is the lowest point of the cartridge, closest to the paper. In the printer, gravity moves the ink from the reservoir to the print head.
The print head is spaced from electrical contact pads that couple the cartridge to the printer such that the print head is on a different plane than the electrical contact pads. The contact pads are often at an opposite end of the cartridge from the print head. The cartridges include a flexible electrical connection that couples the contact pads to the print head. This allows the end that holds the print head to be a small as possible and include as few features as possible. The flexible electrical connections conform to the sides of the cartridge until they couple to the external contact pads that provide external power to the cartridge. The print head and the contact pads for the external power supply are on different planes, which is very expensive to implement.